From my travels I have observed an imbalance in the UK system of licensing and wages, I have not experienced it myself (at least in the negative sense) but I am aware it exist. The article below brings it out in the open. For some in other parts of the world, this system of varying pay for varying locations of home smells of discrimination. Perhaps it the norm from the receiving end, for some the norm from the giving end; personally I am of the opinion that a person who holds the same license as the next guy, should have the same treatment, but hey maybe I am naive. What do you think?

Martin

Chamber warns on ‘precipitous’ change to race relations law

To ensure the British shipping industry stays competitive, it is essential that the Government finds a way of maintaining UK shipowners’ ability to employ seafarers from countries where living costs are lower than in Britain at rates of pay appropriate to the countries in which they live and maintain their homes and families.

Failure to do so would seriously threaten the remarkable British shipping revival experienced since the introduction of tonnage tax in 2000, and could result in hundreds of ships being taken out of the British fleet and re-registered under other flags.

The Chamber is awaiting the Government’s response to its recent consultation on proposals to amend Section 9 of the Race Relations Act 1976, which currently allows seafarers recruited abroad to be paid at different rates than those recruited in the UK. The Government is also proposing a Single Equality Act to consolidate its existing anti-discrimination legislation on grounds of race, gender, disability and age and harmonise definitions and scope of application. This too could have implications for shipping trading to the UK.

The Chamber accepts the Government’s view that – as currently written – section 9 is in conflict with European anti discrimination law, as it allows pay discrimination against nationals of otherEU member states, but warns against the removal of the exemption before other solutions have been put in place.

Operators of UK-registered ships do not discriminate on any grounds other than nationality/domicile nor in any other way than pay. The same high standards relating to safety and health, hours of work and living and working conditions apply to all seafarers working on UK-registered ships, and compliance with those standards is monitored effectively by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

Differences in wage rates applied by shipowners are based on the costs of living in seafarers’ countries of domicile, and as a result – even when lower than the pay rates enjoyed by British seafarers – their wages are on a par with some of the most highly-paid professionals, such as doctors and judges, in their home countries. This is a very different issue from employmentwithin the UK, the ships on which these seafarers work may never even call at a British port.

There is no prospect that a change to the present arrangements will increase job opportunities for UK seafarers. If anything, it will have the opposite effect.

The employment of seafarers is subject to global competitive pressures – far more so than in many other industries – which would not be reduced in any way by the imposition of laws requiring payparity between seafarers resident in the UK and those resident in other EU member states.

UK-registered ships that trade internationally are invariably in direct competition with foreign operators, who are not faced with any restrictions as to pay rates. Even if the Government were toremove pay differentials in respect of other EEA Member and designated state nationals only, such a move would put at least 300 UK-registered ships at serious risk of being flagged out. It is likely that the majority of operators of these ships would also seek to replace their EEA/designated state nationals with seafarers from third world countries.

This would clearly be counter to the intent of any change in legislation, and would prove detrimental not only to the Government’s policy of growing the UK fleet but also for the national economies of the EEA member and designated states of origin of the seafarers concerned, whoseseafarers might face increasing difficulties in finding employment.

It could also discourage operators from retaining UK ownership and/or management of these vessels. Were there to be an exodus of shipping interests from the UK, the effects on the UK’s foreign warnings capacity would be very strongly felt.

Additionally, the European Commission Green Paper “Towards a Maritime Policy for the Union: A European Vision for the Oceans and Seas” acknowledged that seafarers are sometimes paid on“home/residence conditions” even where EC law on freedom of movement of workers applies. It stated that this gives rise to complex issues that need further consideration at EU level, in closecooperation with social partners.

In the light of this, it would, in the Chamber’s view, be entirely inappropriate and precipitous for the UK Government to propose amendments to the Race Relations Act whilst the issue remains unresolved at European level. Shipping is a global business and therefore must be seen in that wider context to ensure the industry stays buoyant in a ferociously competitive market.

Please send letters and comments to Jeremy Harrison at jeremy.harrison@british-shipping.org